Acceptance
by shadowninja1718
Summary: He was lost when she found him. She that that maybe, just maybe she could help him through the hardships that lay ahead SasuSaku
1. Peace

**I got this idea after reading chapter 393 and thought "What the heck?" and went through with it. Also, if some of you are wondering about "Savoring a Broken Heart" don't worry, I'll update that soon, hopefully. I just haven't been in the mood to type lately.**

**So, this takes place after that chapter, so spoilers are involved. Also, I kinda twisted it a bit and ... well, you'll see xD**

**Anyway, enjoy.**

* * *

Peace ... it was something the pink haired kunoichi hadn't experienced in ages. Peace to normal people was just a word like any other. To shinobi, however, it was a foreign word. There was never peace to them. There would always be missing nin, assassins, other criminals, and war out there.

Sakura never thought she'd experience such tranquility in a small field. Her clothes were ripped and torn while she sported many bruises and cuts from her latest mission, but that didn't matter. Nothing mattered at the moment. To her, she was the only one in the world right now-- her world. There was nothing to bother her in _her_ world and she liked it that way.

But of course, peace has to end at some point.

Sakura opened her bright green eyes, staring up at the dull blue sky for a moment before she sat up. She never broke her gaze from the sky, watching as clouds slowly went by and the sky slowly darkened. It was a sad thing, dark colors. Though, she was always drawn to them. Mysterious and cold things were always something that interested her. 

Despite the fact that she looked like a girl who loved flowers and dresses, she loved many weird things that _normal_ girls would never dream of wanting. She never wanted a loving prince to sweep her off of her feet and take her home like most girls. No, she had always wanted the opposite. She wanted the brooding and cold Uchiha Sasuke. 

Of course, every girl wanted him. It wasn't anything new that another girl had wanted him. 

Sasuke was far from a prince. He may have had something close to the looks, but his attitude to girls was to poor to consider him a real prince. He was a prodigy, not a prince, and she, of course, accepted that.

She accepted _everything_ about him. His attitude, his thirst for revenge, him.

But she couldn't have him was what irked her when he left. She had confessed her love to him, begged Sasuke to take her with him, even offered to help with his revenge, but he didn't accept her offers. He didn't accept _her_ in general, it felt.

It hurt.

But now, she was a skilled kunoichi. A medical ninja and Tsunade's apprentice. Once both Naruto and Sasuke were gone, she was the only one left in team 7, save for Kakashi, and she was going to prove she had what it took to be just as good.

Naruto had the Kyuubi and Sasuke was a prodigious Uchiha ... and she had been a naive little girl.

But now, she had to say that she had caught up. She had finally proven herself. She was no longer the weak little girl she used to be. She was Haruno Sakura.

Sakura was brought back to reality when she felt water hit her face. frowning, she stood up, looking from the dark sky to the direction that the village was. It'd take her another day or so to reach Konoha, and she wasn't going to travel in the rain. She had time and she wasn't going to act like an idiot. She'd just go find shelter.

Sighing, Sakura began walking. Her sandals splashed through the small puddles that were slowly beginning to form on the ground. The long grass clung to her now wet legs as she walked, which she paid no mind to. She was pretty much already a mess and some grass wasn't going to hurt.

Sakura could see what looked like a cave in the distance. She could stay there for awhile until the rain cleared. She wasn't going to take her chances if the rain got worse.

She made her way to the small cave, ringing out her bubble gum colored hair as she got inside. She blinked, seeing something move. She let her hands fall to her sides as she began making her way further into the cave to investigate what it was. She froze, seeing the one person that she thought she wouldnever see again, leaning against one of the walls on the cave with his gaze.on the ground.

"Sasuke-kun...?"

* * *

**Hope you liked this Review and favorite if you like it.**

**-shadowninja1718**


	2. Return

Sakura stared at the Uchiha standing just a few feet away. Was it really him? Was it really _Sasuke_? Sakura smiled, taking a step toward Sasuke. She stopped though, once she was a few steps away from the brooding Uchiha. He hadn't even bothered to look at her. He didn't even seem to notice that she was even there.

"Sasuke-kun?" She bent down in front of him.

Sasuke tensed when he felt Sakura grab his shoulder. He narrowed his eyes, glaring up at the pink haired girl. "What do you want?"

Sakura pursed her lips together. What was wrong with Sasuke? She could tell he was slightly out of it, and he was hurt. His body was covered in scratches and cuts. She slowly forced him to sit down and crossed her legs.

"Sasuke-kun ... what happened?" Sakura mumbled, green chakra surrounding her hands as she placed them on Sasuke's forehead, which was somewhat warm.

She sighed softly, shifting her position to where she was sitting on her knees as she began to heal Sasuke, who was making no move to stop her. He seemed to be thinking about something, and she wasn't going to bother him.

Once she was done, she let her hands rest in her lap as she watched him. To tell the truth, she had never seen him like this. He usually looked angry from how she remembered him but at the moment, he just looked ... well, confused. She was starting to worry, since he hadn't spoken or moved in the past ten minutes. How long had he been in this cave? Why was he even here?

"Sasuke-kun."

After about two minutes, she thought she wasn't going to get a response, but was proved wrong when he lifted his head up to look at her.

"What happened?" Sakura repeated her earlier question.

Sasuke's gaze drifted to the ground as he drifted back into thought, as if he were trying to remember something that happened years ago. After a few minutes he opened his mouth to speak, though nothing came out. After about a minute, he began speaking. "I killed Itachi."

Sakura's eyes widened as she stared at the Uchiha in silence. Was Itachi really dead? Had Sasuke actually killed his brother?

"Itachi's dead...?"

Sasuke gave a numb nod, though he didn't look too proud of his deed. Sakura could tell that the outcome of revenge was much different than what Sasuke thought it would be. He thought it'd be the greatest moment of his life, that his clan could be at peace now that the man that had caused him so much pain was now dead. It didn't feel that great. It felt like the brother he had spent time with when he was little was killed right in front of his eyes. Was that because of that stupid little poke to the forehead? Could that have really made such a big deal?

Sakura watched Sasuke carefully. This hadn't been the reunion she expected. She had expected something like a fight, not sitting here with Sasuke, who still didn't seem like he was all the way there.

".. Is this what you wanted...?" Sakura asked. She wasn't sure if she should have asked that, but she couldn't help it.

"I don't know.."

Sakura hadn't expected that, she hadn't expected an _answer, _actually. She wasn't sure if this was actually Sasuke, if it was, he had certainly changed since she last saw him. She folded her arms over her knees. ".. Would you like to come back to Konoha?"

Sasuke arched an eyebrow. Was she actually going to _ask _him to come. He figured there would be force in that request.

Sakura knew he wouldn't answer that, even in his state. He wasn't going to answer to everything.

Sasuke blinked, tensing when he felt Sakura wrap her arms around him. He could feel her fingers running through his hair soothingly, much like how his mother used to.

"Sasuke-kun, I don't want to force you to come home. I want you to come back because you _want_to. I don't want you to dread every day in Konoha."

Sasuke let his gaze drift to the ground.

"But..."

Sasuke blinked, hearing the change in her tone.

"If I have to, I will drag you back, Sasuke Uchiha." Sakura stated, frowning. "I don't want to have to resort to that, but I will needed."

Sasuke couldn't help but smirk. Well, he could tell she didn't care to voice her opinions, unlike the twelve-year-old Sakura he used to know.

"Well..?" Sakura's voice sounded hopeful, watching Sasuke.

"It seems either way, I don't have a choice." Sasuke sighed, closing his eyes. "So I guess..."

Sakura could feel tears forming in her eyes before she threw her arms around the Uchiha, causing him to fall back against the wall. The one thing she hadn't noticed was that on Sasuke's face, the smirk had grew into a small smile.

* * *

"Sasuke-kun...?"

Sasuke turned his head, watching as Sakura neared the entrance of the cave. He was currently sitting on the edge of where the cave broke up to what one could consider to be steps. He waited for Sakura to continue, knowing that she had grown used to how he had chosen to not reply when it wasn't needed.

"It might get a little cold. Are you sure you don't need a shirt or something? I have a cloak if you--"

"I'll be fine."

"... Alright, but ... there's one thing I need to discuss with you." Sakura frowned, walking closer to Sasuke and sitting down. "What happened exactly after Itachi died?" She knew this had become a rather delicate subject, but she needed answers before taking him to Konoha.

"I'm not sure." Sasuke said, his tone not showing that he cared. "I collapsed after Itachi did. I was a little startled though when I woke up." Sasuke couldn't help but smirk, remembering how when he woke up, he was right next to Itachi's dead body. His arm had been touching Itachi's, which was cold. That startled him also before he had remembered the battle that took place earlier.

"Startled..?" Sakura questioned, only getting a nod in return. She decided not to ask, knowing Sasuke didn't want to explain. "Well ... is Itachi still .. there?"

Sasuke nodded. "As far as I know, he is. I didn't want to go near him."

Sakura arched an eyebrow. She didn't know if he meant that he was too angry to bother with going near Itachi more than he had to or he was too, dare she say it, scared.

".. I guess we should go." Sakura sighed after a few minutes, standing up.

Sasuke took a few minutes before standing up. He glanced over at Sakura, arching an eyebrow. She was still cut up and bruised from what he guessed was a mission.

Sakura saw him staring before smiling. "Last night I used what was left of my chakra to heal you, since you were in worse condition than I was. I'm going to save my chakra for now just in case we run into anything." Sakura explained.

Sasuke nodded, deciding not to question how she got in that condition. It was none of his business and he wasn't about to act like it was.

Sakura turned her head to look at Sasuke for a moment before jumping down the pieces of rock jutting out from the sides, landing on the ground below. Sasuke landed beside her after a few more seconds before they both began walking, though Sasuke was falling a bit behind.

She looked over her shoulder, seeing that Sasuke was even further behind. She turned around, quickly running over to him. "Sasuke-kun?"

Sasuke took a deep breath before standing back up. "Lets go."

Sakura frowned. "Sasuke-kun, if you're still hurt, it's only going to cause problems later."

"It's nothing serious."

"Stop acting so tough!" Sakura shouted, surprising Sasuke. "I know you think you can handle everything Sasuke, but sometimes you just have to let others help you. Don't just ignore things that happen because at some point it's just too late."

Sasuke watched Sakura, a confused look on his face at Sakura's sudden outburst.

Sakura took a deep breath, trying to calm herself down. She had been in too many situations where close people had died and she was too late to save them. Several missions like that had occurred in the past and she had been too late, luckily it hadn't been anyone from the village, just a merchant they had been escorting along with others.

"Sorry Sasuke-kun, I just ... Don't want anything to happen to you, especially now that you're finally coming back." Sakura mumbled, letting out a shaky sigh.

Sasuke shifted on his feet. He still wasn't comfortable in emotional situations, and this reminded him of the third part of the Chunin Exams. He hadn't been comfortable then either.

"It's alright." Sasuke mumbled after a few minutes of silence.

Sakura looked at Sasuke before taking a step forward, placing her hand s on Sasuke's chest, trying to see what the problem was. If she had been younger and she was touching Sasuke's chest, she probably would have fainted, but now she was older and a medical ninja. When you were a medic, you were used to such things.

Sakura let out a small sigh once she was done. Sasuke's body was still just under some stress from his fight with Itachi, and he had probably pushed himself a bit once they left.

"It's nothing serious." Sakura confirmed as green chakra surrounded her hands, healing what things she missed when she healed him the other night.

Sasuke watched her as she finished up, following her as she dashed off. They had been traveling for hours now. They had probably left around five in the morning, and it was probably around seven in the afternoon. It wouldn't be too long before they reached the village.

Sasuke's thoughts were confirmed when he saw the village gates nearing. He frowned, not knowing if he should be dreading this or be excited about it. Though, however he felt, he'd be at the village within a few minutes.

Sasuke skidded to a stop next to Sakura, who had also stopped. She looked over at him, smiling softly. "Ready?"

"Hn." Was Sasuke's simple reply.

Sakura only continued to smile before she walked towards the gates, Sasuke following behind her.

* * *

"Uchiha Sasuke."

Sasuke looked up as Tsunade spoke his name. He and Sakura had made it to Konoha and surprisingly got to the Hokage's office with only a few people recognizing him. A lot of people had been too busy to even look towards the pink haired kunoichi and the Uchiha that had been making their way through the village.

"From what you have said, Uchiha Itachi is dead, right?"

".. Hai."

"And you killed him?"

"If you consider that I did kill him, then yes."

"And what is that supposed to mean?" Tsunade asked, propping her elbows up and resting her chin on her hands.

"Itachi used a technique that most likely drained and damaged him while it blocked off enemy attacks. He had already used the Sharingan to it's limit, was mostly drained of chakra, and was pretty beaten when he used it so when he used his last move-- Susanoo, his body couldn't take anymore I guess..."

"I see..."

Sakura looked between Tsunade and Sasuke, biting her lip. This discussion had been going on for about an hour now. Sasuke was finally starting to talk, and she guessed he was still having a hard time accepting this as well, so he didn't want to give information that he himself wasn't sure about.

"Is that all, Tsunade-sama?" Sakura finally asked. She didn't mean to rush her, but she knew that Sasuke was uncomfortable at the moment, despite the fact that he mainly looked bored.

"There's one more thing." Tsunade stated, looking from Sakura to Sasuke. "Sasuke Uchiha, you will need to be watched for the next few months, just to make sure you don't try anything. When Naruto or Sakura are not with you, ANBU will be watching."

Sasuke frowned, but he wasn't going to say anything. He knew that he was lucky that he even got to stay in the village. Besides, it could have been a lot worse than being watched.

"Did you already tell Naruto that Sasuke-kun was back?"

Tsunade shook her head and smiled when she saw both Sasuke's and Sakura's confused look. "I doubt Sasuke will want Naruto bothering him at the moment, especially after all that has happened. He'll be told tomorrow."

Sakura smiled and nodded. "Alright."

"Don't screw up, Uchiha." Tsunade stated, looking over at Sasuke.

Sasuke rolled his eyes before standing up, walking towards the door, Sakura following behind him.

"You don't have to come with me, Sakura." Sasuke stated, his voice not coming out as demanding as he had intended.

"I just want to make sure you make it home ok." Sakura insisted, though really, she wanted to make sure he himself was ok. He seemed more vulnerable than ever, and that scared her.

Sasuke was never supposed to be vulnerable. He was supposed to be unbeatable. He was supposed to be able to hold his head high through everything because ... because..

_Because he's an Uchiha..._Sakura thought, watching Sasuke's bare back.

Sakura followed Sasuke as he walked to his compound, opening the door which he hadn't even bothered to lock before he left. He flipped on the light, which surprisingly still worked.

He hadn't really been surprised by that, but he was surprised that his house seemed ... clean. He had expected dust everywhere and even some things missing, but everything was there. Some things weren't as he had left it, but it was pretty close.

Sakura smiled, walking in with her hands folded behind her back before turning to look at Sasuke. "Naruto and I came in once every month or two and cleaned up a bit ... just in case."

Sasuke nodded, knowing what she meant as he closed the door behind him.

Sakura watched as Sasuke walked by her, heading into the kitchen. He opened the refrigerator, though, not surprisingly, there was no food.

"Naruto and I stopped supplying your kitchen after the first year." Sakura laughed nervously, peeking into the kitchen. "After that long, we figured ..."

Sasuke closed the refrigerater door, shaking his head. "I didn't really expect you to do my shopping anyway. I was just curious."

Sakura nodded as Sasuke walked by her, going down the hall. She sighed, turning around and headed for the door. Sasuke didn't need her there. She was probably only getting on his nerves.

She reached over, opening the door.

"Hey."

Sakura blinked, turning her head to look at Sasuke. "Y-yes..?"

Sasuke sighed, crossing his arms. He clearly didn't look comfortable. He leaned against the wall, looking off to the side. "Really, I don't like the idea of ANBU watching me ... so ... um.."

"Sasuke-kun?"

Sasuke tilted his head to look at her.

"Do you want me to stay ...?"

* * *

**I'm not trying to rush a relationship or anything, and Sasuke isn't exactly falling for Sakura if that's what you're thinking. Eh, it'll be explained more as the story goes on and such. I hope you enjoyed the extra long chapter :D**

**Also, just a note. This doesn't take place exactly after chapter 394. It's probably after a few weeks to months, maybe a little longer, but not much.**

-**shadowninja1718**


End file.
